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Tag Archives: everyday life

I’ll start with a side note. I saw the trailer for A Ghost Story about three times, I think two of which were at an AMC. And then the local AMCs collectively failed to ever show the film, or if they did it was for no more than a week or a day. When it was still showing in theaters outside my area, e.g. in LA, I went to one of the main AMCs to watch another film and was surprised to see a super-sized lobby cardboard poster display for the film. I inquired about it, and was told there were no plans to show the film.

A theater showing trailers and setting large promotional items on display for a movie seems only to make sense if said theater will at some point show the movie. But that’s indicative of numerous areas of mismanagement on the part of AMC. I went to a film lately and a couple of the seats had such a strong fecal odor I moved.

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I point out the AMC nonsense above because I felt like A Ghost Story, starring consummate actors Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara, was one of the more significant indies of the year, and given short shrift by the cinemas. Nonetheless, I was determined to watch it to consider among the films of 2017, so I did something that is rare for me these days: saw it at home.

The movie is intriguing, and certainly compelling — but falls short of providing that grand a-ha moment. In other words, I liked it despite a thin story. 7/10

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Note: This film is presented in a square (1.33:1) frame with rounded corners, for no particularly obvious or excellent reason. An affectation, perhaps, but in this case it does not distract from the movie — unlike in American Honey. I like a lot that A24 Films does, but the square frame trend I hope can be put to rest.

Lane from Mad Men as an American in Montana — and just as frustrated with life? What’s not to like? Another bonus: placing Certain Women in Livingston — a town I became quite fond of a couple years back. Tom Huddleston, Time Out:

The setting is Montana in winter, where the Rocky Mountains roll down into the dry, open plains. …it’s hard to recall a movie with such a precise, immersive sense of place, and the very specific mood that comes with it.

That central Montana setting bound me with instant affection to this film. Now to the “buts.” I have an “everyday life” tag — and Certain Women has become the mother of all “everyday life” tags. There are no sweeping dramatic developments to be found here, yet the film is compelling. On paper, there’s not much to substantiate my “story matters” mantra. But this is not paper; it is — as David Lynch would say — the language of cinema.

Another potential problem related to the first is that presenting in this slice-of-life way the three exclusive stories do not allow any of them to build to a crescendo. Potential, I say, because that’s the point — as much as anything else — of Certain Women. 7/10

After seeing snippets here and there many times, and hearing about it in conversation on a number of occasions, I finally watched in its entirety Office Space. Certainly it’s an iconic film, even borderline essential — but that doesn’t mean it’s great. The production values leave something to be desired, and purely as comedy it does not measure up to the best Apatow productions. Michael Wilmington of the Chicago Tribune characterized it as: “Drably shot, unimaginatively written and shallowly acted.”

Still, I recommend Office Space for its classic if rough-hewn content. Despite its flaws, it musters up a few good laughs, and it’ll keep you in the know next time it comes up at the water cooler. 6/10

Availability: iTunes. Comparison Notes: Any episode of The Office featuring Steve Carell (don’t bother with post-Steve Carell episodes) is ten times funnier than Office Space. And, for a much better Mike Judge production, you may visit my post on Beavis and Butt-Head Do America.

Lincoln failed by being a movie about the petitioning of individual votes, instead of being about, say, the sixteenth President of the United States, or the Civil War, or Slavery. Two Days, One Night is a better movie, but fails by the same account. It also builds the case — along with The Blue Room and Blue is the Warmest Color — that critics are amoureux with anything French these days.

For most of the movie monotony ruled and I was saying no; by the end a couple nice scenes turned it to a yes. But on reflection the no votes win out. 5/10

A great Rotten Tomatoes score (97%) and the chance to see John Lithgow, one of my favorite actors in — gasp! — a movie! — motivated me to see him in the story of of an aging gay couple, Love Is Strange. The last — and only — John Lithgow movie I can think of him in was the terrific Terms of Endearment. I’ve always loved him though, especially in the work most associated with him, 3rd Rock from the Sun, the most exuberant sitcom ever made. He’s a brilliant actor, and I wish he had done, and will do more movies.

But alas, this project finds him saddled with a visionless, pedestrian script that makes you appreciate the genius of Woody Allen. The performances are good enough, though the best job here is by Marisa Tomei, always the consummate pro. Nothing is exceptional on any level, and the plot, script and overall production are straight out of amateur hour. 3/10

NEIGHBORS IS FUNNY. But there’s an interesting dynamic at play: a legitimate dramatic storyline, while driving the entire movie, is serious enough that it conflicts with the comedy. When a young couple-with-baby have neighbors from hell (a frat house) move in next door, a genuine and potent conflict arises — and there are no obvious solutions; just moving away is an idea promptly shot down.

The comedic yin and dramatic yang of Neighbors give it tension of the type that doesn’t exist in a pure comedy as say, Austin Powers, or even Superbad. Indeed, you can almost think of this movie as a cross between Animal House and Lakeview Terrace. The dramatic edge cuts into the funny face of the movie, and limits the all-out belly laughs. But it’s quite ingenious in it’s simple way. Because there’s no doubt this is a comedy, and likely the best of the year. And though the dramatic side may tousle with the comedic, it also holds the film up and sustains it from start to finish.

But don’t get me wrong: Neighbors is not particularly tense. This is not a life-and-death crime drama after all. It’s just a very successful comedy, and surprisingly so. As The Other Woman demonstrated, comedy is tough. The only real problem I had with Neighbors was a certain airbag sequence, but it was short-lived. 8/10.

Sofia Coppola’s Somewhere (2010), speaks much the same language as her terrific film of 2003, Lost in Translation. It is about a fictional A-list movie actor, Johnny Marco, who would seem to have everything — great success in his career, great wealth and fame, and a bright, vivacious 11-year-old daughter. But Johnny Marco is a man adrift; his existence is almost entirely hollow. Almost, because there is one thing saving his soul from complete emptiness: his daughter.

Coppola is a fascinating director. She sees, and we see exactly what she sees. There is little attempt here to observe a plot. All the attention is on the handful of characters, on Johnny. He has attained success in his chosen field, and lost track of the ability to experience it. Perhaps you can stimulate yourself so much for so long that your sensitivity wears out. If Johnny has no inner life and his outer life no longer matters, then he’s right: He’s nothing.

Coppola presents Johnny Marco’s existence in a matter-of-fact, deadpan way that will remind you of Bill Murray in Lost in Translation. A lot of people might really hate this movie: there is no big car chase explosions, or high-stake drug heists, or vengeance killings — or anything even a tenth so dramatic. But I found Somewhere compelling and entertaining. 8/10